Levin’s passing naturally did not provoke the ‘end of an era’ sensation of Mailer. Levin did not enjoy the ‘literary wunderkind’ reputation of Mailer and was described as ‘mild-mannered’ where Mailer was ‘pugilistic’. But among his seven novels are some of the best-known and, through their film adaptations, arguably the most influential American novels of the last fifty years, notably Rosemary’s Baby (1967) and The Boys From Brazil (1976). Levin worked in television and wrote plays and screenplays as well as seeing his novels adapted.The Guardian‘s obituary is thorough, but The New York Times tribute highlights Levin’s worry that his books had promoted Satanism. Even so, he said ‘I didn’t send back any of the royalty checks.’

And on the subject of royalties J.K. Rowling has been in the news for casting a spell on a fan’s attempt to make a reference book from a website. Read about this craziness here.